Despite the many advances that have been made in ski lift operation and design, the loading of skiers onto a chair lift and the unloading of skiers from a chair lift continue to be difficult and sometimes dangerous procedures.
There are two main types of chairlifts commonly used. These are fixed grip chairlifts and detachable grip high-speed chairlifts. In fixed grip chairlifts, since the chair moves relatively rapidly along the loading area, skiers encounter difficulties in reaching the loading point and sitting down comfortably on the chair because the skier is exposed to the shock of a chair which is moving at a faster speed than the skier. This can be especially difficult for small children. In detachable grip high-speed chairlifts, the chairs move at a slow speed at the loading point and then accelerate to a high speed for the journey uphill, but such chairlifts are complicated and more expensive to manufacture and operate. They also need expensive protection equipment to protect the detachable mechanism from the weather elements.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,548,753 issued on Dec. 22, 1970 is disclosed a passenger loading installation having a conveyor belt by means of which skiers standing on the conveyor belt are accelerated to a velocity substantially the same as that of the cable. After embarkment of the passengers, the conveyor is stopped and the next passengers may step on the conveyor to be moved towards the loading point. However, this installation requires the use of a driving drum and an idler drum with the conveyor belt, which are expensive. Also, there is no deceleration stage to provide for safe unloading of passengers.
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,454,326 and 5,454,327 issued on Oct. 3, 1995 is disclosed a passenger loading installation having a conveyor belt with drums This system is also prohibitively expensive and while it assists with the loading of the skier, it dramatically increases the danger of unloading the skier by subjecting the skier to a shock while unloading.
Other conveyor belt systems have been proposed, some of which involve the skier sliding down a ramp onto a conveyor belt, thereby exposing the skier to a jolt when entering the ramp and again when the skier is being seated on the moving chair. In previous systems, when disembarking from the chair, the skier is often forced to ski down a ramp which can be hazardous, leading to unnecessary injury.
The use of rollers in connection with ski tows or lifts is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,609 issued on Sep. 23, 1980 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,602,361 issued on Aug. 31, 1971. However, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,609, the skier is propelled by a pusher element and in U.S. Pat. No. 3,602,361, by powered handrails onto a moving conveyor belt type tow. Both systems are complicated and awkward for the skier to use.